Online Commercial Fishing Vessel Safety Information

Excerpt from U.S. Coast Guard Proceedings of the Marine Safety & Security Council magazine by ENS Amy Downton, U.S. Coast Guard Reserve

The official United States Coast Guard Fishing Vessel Safety Division homepage is unrestricted and open to the public.

Homeport Helpful Hints
For navigating around the United States Coast Guard Homeport portal:

• Missions—information about the U.S. Coast Guard’s efforts in marine safety, marine security, and environmental protection.
• Port Directory—public information directory for each U.S. Coast Guard port area.
• Library—U.S. Coast Guard marine safety, marine security, and environmental protection regulations, policy, forms, and publications.

Creating a personal Homeport user account allows users to customize content to access area-specific information by port or interest.

Users may also sign up for USCG text message alerts.

How to Register for a Homeport Account
1. From the Homeport homepage click the “register” link in the upper-right corner of the screen.
2. Read the list of requirements, then click “ok.”
3. If you meet the requirements, complete the Homeport registry form.
4. If you wish to receive USCG alerts by SMS/text messaging, check the box.
5. Select “primary Captain of the Port zone” from the drop-down menu.
6. To add one or more COTP zones, check the box or see “adding other COTP zones to the registration form.”
7. If applicable, select a value under “committees.” For the Safety Advisory Committee, enter your title, role, and associated subcommittee.

Full article is available at http://www.uscg.mil/proceedings/winter2010-11/

Subscribe online at http://www.uscg.mil/proceedings/subscribe.asp.